Chapter5

Themes and Messages:

If students are expected to read challenging texts, they must be equipped with the proper tools for reading them-- such as thinking aloud and reciprocal teaching: "In this class, I will learn about reading strategies-- what to do when I get stuck" (75).

Student reading improves when students are self-aware and read strategically: "You think about reading while you are reading... I think about the purpose of why I am reading something" (75).

The "invisible" process of reading must be made visible-- and then practiced until they are second nature (79).

Reading-- and the process of becoming a master reader-- does not happen in isolation; there is individual and group responsibility for learning: "Students also came to view one another as resources for learning to use strategies successfully" (76).

The spirit of inquiry and the ability to develop one's own questions are essential to reading for understanding. Questions often reflect what you DO know-- not your ignorance (80).

Key Questions for School Librarians:

How does the school library program promote a spirit of inquiry? Are essential questions visible in the library (like teachers post essential questions in their classrooms)?

Do the library staff promote a sense of learning as a social activity-- or do students feel like staff are there only to help them LOCATE resources?

Strategies:

THINK ALOUD
The "Think Aloud" strategy demonstrates a mental checklist of the "invisible" processes that develop comprehension: predicting, picturing, making connections, identifying problems, and correcting.

The teacher can initially model this by reading a selection aloud to a class and pausing to explain his/her own mental processes: "I can predict.." or "This reminds me of..." The teacher shows how each comment reflects one of the reading strategies on the mental checklist. In the next step, the teacher reads/makes comments, but the students identify the strategy associated with each comment. Next, the students can work in pairs to read together, make their own comments, and classify them with checklists. Gradually, the thinking aloud becomes thinking silently. Students can also keep a folder of checklists to assess their progress over time.

REQUEST
Students write their own questions based on assigned reading. One student begins the activity in class by reading one of his/her questions, and then calling on a volunteer to answer it. If the volunteer is correct, he/she becomes the new questioner. The process continues until everyone in the class has answered at least one question.

This activity can be developed futher once the different categories of questions have been taught, based on Raphael's question types: right there, pulling it together, author and me, on my own. Ultimately, students will be able to identify, create, and answer more sophisticated questions. Using this framework leads to more focused reading and increased understanding.


Notes on the Chapter: